* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Some people say that Gadget ''isn't'' stupid, he's [[ObfuscatingStupidity willingly]] being a distraction so Penny can accomplish the mission, since when Penny's safety is threatened, he suddenly becomes a ''lot'' more competent.* BrokenBase: While the show certain has nostalgia with many audiences, a common point of contention was making Gadget a UselessProtagonist after the first handful of episodes. Some liked the unique SupportingProtagonist dynamic, while other claimed it reduced the main character (particular one with such a surreal gimmick) into superficial comic relief[[note]]To the point some fans have literally edited him out of episodes with little detriment to the plot[[/note]] and would have either preferred the earlier dynamic with the more semi-effective Gadget, or a show with just Penny as the main protagonist.* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: In the episode "Gone Went the Wind", Inspector Gadget finds Chief Quimby in the frozen chicken isle at the supermarket, but before Quimby appears, [[MindScrew one of the frozen chickens inexplicably gets out and walks away]].* EarWorm: "Doo-doo-doo-doo-doot, Inspector Gadget..."** The theme song often plays in the background. No matter what locale Gadget goes to, the local music is simply the theme song reworked to that particular country's musical style. This further ingrains the theme song in your ear and also saves the sound people from having to worry about copyrights. It's so catchy that even the characters [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall frequently hum or whistle it]].** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0mlC026Wwk French version]] has a theme song with lyrics, making it one in its own right.** Penny's theme (both the normal and [[ThemeSongPowerUp heroic]] versions).* EnsembleDarkhorse: Some of the M.A.D. Agents get this treatment, most notably Lana Lamour from the episode "Movie Set".* EvilIsCool: Claw. Who wouldn't want that voice?* FanonDiscontinuity: Some fans feel this way about the second season.* FirstInstallmentWins: The first season and series are possibly the most parodied out of the franchise.* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: To this day, the series has a strong cult following in France.* HarsherInHindsight: A MAD agent couldn't dare sneak blunt objects on a plane today, nor could Penny and Brain sneak into the cargo hold of passenger jets to get to destinations under Gadget's nose, without plenty of TSA office visits and permanent inclusion on the no-fly list. Not to mention the chances of Gadget ever getting past airport security what with all the metal and potentially deadly equipment he's got inside him (Go-go gadget scissors, anyone?)** A fanfic called ''Euro Gadget'' (following up from the first live-action movie) points this out and explains it. He has to call the airport ahead of time to let them know- and even then, his extendable limbs accidentally activate while being screened.* HilariousInHindsight:** Gadget biting and destroying his pillow during a nightmare in "Bad Dreams Are Made of This" becomes even funnier and more disturbing if you're familiar with the honeymoon scene from [[{{Literature/Twilight}} a certain infamous vampire love story]].** The idea of an assassination attempt via grenades disguised as milk bottles, and the assassin disguised as a milkman, would later be reused in ''Film/TheLivingDaylights''.** In the episode "Dry Spell", the M.A.D. agent Dirk Boulder is assisted by a pair of identical trolls, one wearing orange and the other wearing blue. Orange and blue would later be the respective colors of Fidget and Digit, the titular Gadgetinis from the spinoff series WesternAnimation/GadgetAndTheGadgetinis.** The episode title "NSF Gadget" in the day and age of the internet, with the prefix NSF typically being used in acronyms like NSFW, or "Not Safe For Work", indicating material of pornographic, gory, or generally disturbing nature that is, well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin material generally not considered safe to be seen in a public space, such as a work environment.]]* InferredHolocaust: Sometimes occurs either when M.A.D.'s superweapons are tested or when Gadget destroys their large, elaborate secret bases. For example, in "The Bermuda Triangle" Claw's hide-out is a huge, small city-sized ocean-floor complex that must require dozens if not hundreds of crew just for basic operations and daily maintenance. (About a dozen are seen onscreen in any one frame.) Gadget floods the base, and (barely) survives, as does Claw in his personal submarine -- But no mention is made of other survivors ...* MemeticMutation: Gadget appeared to give instructions on a lot of early Creator/DiC DVD menus (even in series that had nothing to do with him), and some of the things he says have caught on due to a review by Creator/JamesRolfe. ''Move the glow around the button you want to select!''** Next time, Gadget! ''NEEEEEXT TIIIIIIIME!'' * TheProblemWithLicensedGames: While the games based on this franchise aren't necessarily terrible, they're very forgettable with a few exceptions.* TheScrappy: Corporal Capeman. Not only was he even ''stupider'' than Gadget, he would often be a total ass to Brain for no reason at all.* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: The second season, which has a different film look to it, most of the action takes place around Gadget's neighborhood, many of the voices are different and the plots... Creator/{{Nelvana}} wasn't involved with this season. * TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: Gadget is a pretty darn awesome superhero in concept (you could argue this was why Disney made the 1999 movie- to try and make him more effective), but he spends the entire series gleefully clutching the IdiotBall and generally being useless. A lot of people say that Penny's a lot better as TheProtagonist, and wish that she was the series' primary focus.* TheWeirdAlEffect: Anyone who has grown up watching the cartoon will recognize its theme song better than Edvard Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King", which the theme is based on.

!!The films:

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: John Debney's BigBudgetBeefUp version of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_bHfbbNH7uw the theme song]].** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xh_SGzJgauM "I'll be your everything/Fulfill your every dream..."]]* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: The transitions between scenes which seem to showcase Gadget's various devices. Thoroughly parodied by WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic who mocked how random and jarring they were. ** Gadget's various ImagineSpots also are worthy of mention, usually of moments between him and Brenda that were seemingly cut from the main flow of the story. ** [[NoFourthWall The entire scene where Scolex, Gadget, and Kramer look directly into the camera to acknowledge the audience]], after Scolex had accused "somebody of watching too many Saturday Morning cartoons". Fittingly enough, Sikes is completely baffled at what they're staring at. * BrokenBase: The fans are divided between those who despised the first film for not being close enough to the cartoons, those who hated the second film for not being enough like the first, people who hated both and prefer to stick to the cartoons, and the people who liked both films. All of the above is ''without'' taking onto consideration the people who liked either of the movies, but disliked the cartoons.* EndingFatigue: Even after it's over, the end credits are littered with cutaway clips of what the characters have moved on to after catching Claw, complete with the Gadgetmobile's life story which carries on even when the credits finally conclude. * HilariousInHindsight: As a few memes have pointed out, the "Sore Guru" bears more than a passing resemblance to UsefulNotes/OsamaBinLaden.* HoYay: That [[AmbiguouslyGay Kramer]] ''really'' seems to get off on [[RomanticizedAbuse Claw's]] [[EvilIsSexy abuse]]... while Claw praises Kramer in comparison to constantly dumping on Sikes. Not to mention:---> '''Claw''': "Ok. Turn me on, Kramer..."* InformedWrongness: Through the second film, Gadget continually tells Penny that she can't help in the case because it's dangerous for a child. When one of her clues ends up being critical in [[spoiler:finding out Claw's location after she's been kidnapped]], he relents and says he should have given her a chance... even though he was completely right about it being [[DamselInDistress dangerous for her]].** Chief Quimby also has shades of this in the first film; he coldly refuses to let Gadget take charge of the investigation into Bradford's murder, and makes very clear he does not think of Gadget as a true police officer. This is supposed to make us feel sympathy for Gadget who, mind you, was merely a security guard and thus far remains untested and unproven in actual crimefighting, and is KickedUpstairs doing menial tasks for the city just to satisfy those who saw fit to give him a chance to fight crime with his cybernetic abilities without the blessing of the police department. If anything, Quimby's attitude is simply a natural response to Gadget's inexperience and status as a poster boy for the press. * MoralEventHorizon: Scolex crosses it in his very first scene. Interestingly, John Brown (the future Gadget) thinks Scolex's MEH wasn't the murder of Dr. Artemus Bradford, but having his henchman track oil behind his limo, thus causing Brown's '87 Chevette to flip onto its roof and slide into a Yahoo! billboard. What makes that worse is that Scolex enjoys watching Brown suffer for going after him.-->'''John Brown''': Now you've crossed the line! Pull over, you!\\'''Sanford Scolex''': [[ForTheEvulz Stop the car, Sikes, I want to enjoy this.]]* MostAnnoyingSound: The film is ''loaded'' with familiar cartoon sound effects that emerge in the most mundane moments of the movie. One could easily argue that these can get old after a while. * NightmareFuel: Gadget with all of his robotic parts exposed.** The tarantula coming out of Robo Gadget.** The guru's eyes ''popping out of his head'' when Gadget grabs the wrong set of balls. * OneSceneWonder: Both films save the iconic Gadget-Copter until the climax.* OverusedRunningGag: The gag of the hearts popping up on Gadget's hat showing he's in love pops up in both movies, several times.* {{Sequelitis}}: The direct-to-video sequel dropped most of the better aspects of the film adaptation, the high-quality cast and the large budget was cut drastically. [[SurprisinglyImprovedSequel On the other hand]], it was given props for following the cartoon's formula more closely than its predecessor.%%* SoBadItsGood* SoOkayItsAverage: The first movie in a nutshell. It did manage to make back its budget via international ticket sales.* SpecialEffectsFailure: As previous entries on this list may imply, it's not so much the effects themselves but the film's often incoherent and over-the-top editing that for some may leave a lot to be desired. * {{Squick}} : The giggly, acquiescent, relatively dim, programmed-to-be-a-cheerleader Robo-Brenda was basically a sex doll.** The entire plot hinging on the theft of a ''very'' life-like robotic foot may have some wondering if somebody behind the scenes had an unhealthy foot fetish going on. * UncannyValley: Robo-Gadget. The shifty eyes and fake teeth are scary without trying. One could argue that Broderick made a better villain than a hero.* SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome: Say what you like about the film, but the creators ''really'' used their budget, and the whole thing is worth watching just for Creator/StanWinston's realizations of Inspector Gadget's gadgets. ** Also, Claw's.... claw, is pretty damn impressive looking.* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: You'd never know that Penny was the actual hero of the television series if you're going solely by this film, and is noticeably absent through much of the action despite being a much more able detective than her uncle. This did not go unnoticed by fans and critics, which is perhaps why her role in the sequel is much more prominent. * WhatAnIdiot: Not from Gadget, but instead from Scolex, who went out of his way to build a robotic version of Brenda who was programmed with a MotorMouth for reasons we dare not explore. She ends up blabbing everything to the real Brenda without a second thought. * WTHCastingAgency: One of the main complaints in regards to the first film.** Of the directing variant, as David Kellogg was a ''commercial director'' who's only previous film effort was the critically panned ''Film/CoolAsIce''. Summed up well by both lead actors getting their billing in the opening sequence 30 seconds before he does.----